Kiddo's Kitchen Challenge - 12/04/10

This week's ingredients: blueberry, broccoli, millet and lentils



The recipe: 3B Millet Salad with berry vinaigrette



This was the strangest challenge list I have had yet. Blueberries and broccoli?? What am I supposed to do with that? It's a good thing I have friends to discuss these things with, or I wouldn't have come up with this idea. It's rather simple, really. Not much to it. But it is an odd flavor. Definitely not one of the best recipes, but...blueberries and broccoli??!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup beluga lentils (you can use any kind, I just thought the colors of this would be fun)
2/3 cup dry millet
1 cup broccoli, chopped into tiny pieces
1/2 cup blueberries *note: I used dried blueberries, fresh ones will have a much more vibrant flavor!
2 stalks green onions, chopped
1 tbsp strawberry preserves or jelly (you could use any kind of fruit jelly here, to suit your tastes)
1 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp canola oil

Directions:
Cook the lentils in 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer on med-low about 20 minutes.
Cook the millet. Bring 1 1/3 cups water to a boil, stir in millet, and cook about 20 minutes.
As the millet and lentils are cooking, chop the broccoli and green onion, and prepare the vinaigrette. For the vinaigrette, combine the lime juice and jelly, along with 1 tbsp water, and whisk until smooth. pour in the oil and whisk again. If you want to change the color of your millet and make it a slightly purply color, use a blender or food processor and add some of the blueberries to the mix.
When the millet and lentils are done and cooled a bit, combine them with the berries, onions, broccoli and vinaigrette. Toss until combined, and enjoy... Maybe. Ha ha!

Vegan Thanksgiving

I know the ideas of "vegan" and "Thanksgiving" don't really go well together, but I think this is a happy way of celebrating the holiday.

Thanksgiving recipes

Cornbread stuffing:

Cornbread Recipe

• 1 Cup Yellow Corn Meal
• 1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 3/4 Cup Rice Milk
• 1 Tablespoon Canola Oil

Stuffing Recipe

• 1 Cup Onion, Chopped
• 1 Cup Celery, Chopped
• 2 Tablespoon Light Vegan Butter
• 5 Slices Whole Wheat Bread, Cubed
• 3 Cups of Cornbread, Crumbled
• 1/2 Cup Panko Bread Flakes
• 1 Teaspoon Parsley Flakes
• 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1 Medium Carrot, Grated
• 1 3/4 No-Chicken or vegetable Broth

Cook cornbread first. You can make it a day in advance. Prepare skillet by spraying it with cooking spray and sprinkling it with corn meal. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, mix together corn meal, flour, salt, baking powder, rice milk and canola oil.Pour into skillet and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until top is golden brown. Let set for about 5 minutes before you remove it from the pan.

Now for the dressing. In a saucepan place butter, celery and onions and simmer on medium-low heat until soft.

Preheat oven 350 degrees and toast bread cubes for about 10 minutes or until well toasted.

In a mixing bowl mix together onions and celery, bread cubes, cornbread, bread flakes, poultry seasoning, parsley, onion, sage, pepper, carrot and broth. Place into a 8 inch casserole dish, sprayed with cooking spray. Cover with tin foil. Oven is already preheated. Place into oven and cook for about 45 minutes.

Pumpkin Cake with chocolate glaze:

Ingredients:

• 3/4 Cups Cake Flour
• 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar (Packed)
• 2 Teaspoons Pumpkin Spice
• 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/8 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/8 Teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 Cup Pureed Pumpkin
• 1 Tablespoons Canola Oil
• 1 Tablespoons Light Vegan Butter (Melted)
• 1/1 Teaspoon Vanilla
• 1/4 Cup Water
• 1/2 Teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 325 degrees. Spray an 8inch round cake pan, and flour it.

Mix the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl from the wet before you join them. We don't want to activate the baking soda and powder too quickly.

In a large mixing bowl, put cake flour, brown sugar, pumpkin spice, baking powder and soda, salt. Stir the dry ingredients until well incorporated, making sugar that the brown sugar isn't still packed together.

In a small mixing ball mix together wet ingredients; pumpkin, oil, butter, vanilla, water and vinegar.

Join the wet with the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula, slowly stirring, scraping the sides and mashing the lumps out as you stir. Stir until the batter is pretty much free of lumps.

Pour batter into pan. Place into oven immediately.

Cook about 20 to 25 minutes. Don't open the oven door until after the first 15 minutes of cooking, but after that stick a toothpick in the middle and check to see if it comes out clean. Keep checking and don't take them out until the toothpick comes out clean. Let cake cool before icing.

Glaze:
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

Combine milk and chips in small saucepan on stove, heat on medium and stir until melted. Pour over warm cake and let cool. Soo delicious!

Kiddo's Kitchen Challenge

For the final my web design class, we are making interactive websites. I struggled on what to do, but ultimately, it came down to food. Of course. Here is the link to my class blog:

Kiddo's Kitchen Challenge - Web Design class blog

Watch my progress on the site, and eventually, watch as it gets developed and published to the web!

Mushroom gravy

Super delicious gravy, good on lots of things. So far, I've had it on baked tofu and steamed tempeh. Yum. I bet you can have it on potatoes and love it, some kid of "loaf". mmm.
It doesn't look well when photographed, but I will try again.

Ingredients:
2 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, minced (leeks would even be good)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups chopped mushrooms
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp italian seasoning
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/3 cup plain nondairy milk
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tbsp corn starch

In a medium pan, sautee the onions over medium heat until transluscent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms and cook, covered, for about 4 minutes, until softened. Stir in soy saucce, italian seasoning, and pepper.
Transfer mushroom mix to a blender, add 1/2 cup veg stock, and blend until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.
Return mixture to the same pan, bring it to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low and continue stirring until the gravy is thickened, about 3 minutes.

Testing....

Artichoke, Spinach and Tomato pizza WITH whole wheat crust recipe

How good dos that look?? Wilted yummy spinach, tasty artichokes, and warm, rich tomatoes. Oooh.


Artichoke, Spinach and Tomato Pizza

Makes 2 pizzas, usually. Depending on how loaded you like your pizzas, and what size crust you use. I have a yummy crust recipe here, too.

1 can artichokes, drained and chopped into smaller pieces
1 bunch of spinach, stems removed, chopped into small pieces
1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup parsley, chopped fine
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced or put through garlic press
1/4 tsp sea salt


Directions:

Mix the chopped parsley, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Spread over the uncooked crust in a thin layer.
Next, combine the artichokes, spinach and tomatoes, and mix in the oil/parsley mixture. Spread on top of pizza, as much or as little as you like. I like the pizza heaping with ingredients, and the spinach cooks down so it doesn't end up as enormous as it seems.

Whole-Wheat Pizza dough

1 1/2 cups warm (115 degrees) water
2 packets ( ounce each) active dry yeast
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for bowl
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for kneading
2 cups whole-wheat flour (spooned and leveled)

Place water in a large bowl; sprinkle with yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Brush another large bowl with oil.

In bowl with yeast, whisk sugar, oil, and salt. Stir in flours with a wooden spoon until a sticky dough forms. Transfer to oiled bowl; brush top of dough with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; let stand in a warm spot until dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface. With floured hands, knead until smooth, about 15 seconds; divide into two balls.
Spread dough out onto pan, stretching so it reaches the corners.
Top dough and bake at 350º for 15-18 minutes. Check it to see if the crust is how you like it.
The other piece of dough can be frozen, or you can make two pizzas, using different toppings.
To freeze the 2nd piece, I usually split it into 2 smaller pieces, and roll/stretch them out to form 2 smaller discs, them layer them with parchment paper and freeze. When they are frozen, put them in a gallon size plastic bag or wrap in plastic wrap.

Black Bean Salad and Apple Cheddar Quesadillas

If you didn't know already, black beans are my favorite food thing in the whole world.



Black Bean Salad

1 can black beans, rinsed (My favorite are the reduced sodium Kroger/Smiths brand)
1 avocado, diced
1 tomato, diced
1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed (Even better--corn cut from the cob. But NEVER canned corn. The taste is completely different, and we don't need that added sodium!)
1 handful cilantro, chopped
2 green onion stalks, chopped finely
1/2 tsp garlic salt - try less at first, and taste as you go. The mix of lime and salt can be overpowering.
1/4 tsp cumin, maybe a little more
Stir, season to taste, and enjoy!

Sometimes it's fun to mix in a cup or two of cooked brown rice, and even a small can of tomato sauce to make it a little bit different. Yum.

Apple Cheddar Quesadillas

This one is too simple, it really doesn't even need a recipe. I had a tiny apple from my son's leftovers...he never eats the whole thing. So I sliced it really thin, and I made a quesadilla with the apple slices, whole wheat tortillas, and sliced daiya cheddar.
I will think of some variations and other things to add to make a more complex recipe of this. I'm thinking something green...kale, maybe? Or maybe squash puree mixed with the cheese...this is going to be fun!

I Can't Believe It's Vegan!

There are so many people out there that think that "vegan" means fake meats, cheeses and milks, but really, there are so many things that are technically vegan that they probably eat all the time. To prove that vegan food is not scary, I found this fun site that has a huge list of items that are vegan. Look at all this stuff:

But, just because it's vegan does not mean it's healthy, as you can tell from some of the items in the picture. All things in moderation, right?

Here is a list of a few things that I really enjoy that I can still eat!
Oreos. Mmm.
Sour patch kids
Triscuits
Hershey's chocolate syrup
Edy's(Dryers) Whole Fruit Bars
Keebler Graham Cracker Pie Crust
Bisquick


Here is the site I got this from.

The perfect chocolate chip cookies -V

This recipe was adapted from one I found. I made it complicated and kind of halved the recipe, so I wouldn't have 20 cookies to eat by myself. Yeah, it's true.





1 tbsp ground flax seeds
1 1/2 tbsp water
1/4 cup margarine, room temperature
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract



1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp whole wheat flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup chocolate chips



Preheat oven to 350.
Mix the ground flax and water together in a medium bowl and let it sit for a few minutes while you prepare the dry ingredients. Mix the flours, salt, baking soda, baking powder and chocolate chips in a small bowl.
In the bowl with the flax and water, add the sugars, margarine and vanilla, and wisk until creamy. Stir in the dry mix until well combined.
Make balls about the size of a rounded tablespoon, place on pan, and squish a little to flatten. Not a lot.
Bake in preheated oven about 7-9 minutes. Let cool on pan for 2 minutes. I can't explain how to tell if a cookie is done, but I like them a certain way. I bake mine for 8 minutes in KY.



SO YUM.

Stuffed Pasta Shells

Stuffed Pasta Shells

1 lb large pasta shells
1 cup vegan cheese (optional)
For the filling:
2 cups Tofu basil (recipe follows)
1 lb frozen spinach, thawed, or 1 20 oz bag chopped and steamed
For the sauce:
2 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp Italian seasoning

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, add the shells, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until softened but not thoroughly cooked. Drain and rinse them in cold water.

To make sauce, heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, and cook until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the can of crushed tomatoes, and the Italian seasoning. Cook for a few minutes, until the sauce is heated through and the spices have incorporated. Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of a large casserole pan.

For the filling, stir 1 ½ cups of the basil ricotta and the spinach together. Stuff the shells with about 2 tablespoons of the mixture, then arrange them on the bottom of the pan with the open sides facing down. Spoon the remaining sauce over the shells. Top with cheese, if using. Cover and bake for 15 minutes, then remove lid and bake for 10 minutes longer.


Basil tofu ricotta

1 lb (16 oz) firm tofu, pressed
2 tsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ tsp salt
A dash of fresh black pepper
a handful of fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
2 tsp olive oil
¼ cup nutritional yeast

In a large bowl, mush the tofu up with your hands until it is crumbly. Add the lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper and basil. Mush with your hands again, until it reaches the consistency of ricotta cheese. This may take a few minutes. Add the olive oil, stir with a fork. Add the nutritional yeast, and mix all ingredients well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Acorn Squash Ratatouille

Acorn Squash Ratatouille

1 acorn squash
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 eggplant, cubed
1 large or 2 small zucchini, diced
1 tablespoon dried or 3 tbsp fresh chopped basil
1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 tsp sea salt

Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, and cut it into pieces that will fit into a steamer. Steam for 30-40 minutes, until very soft.

Meanwhile, heat the oil un a saucepan or skillet over medium-low heat, add the onion, garlic, eggplant, zucchini, basil, Italian seasoning and pepper, and sauté for about 15 minutes, until the eggplant is very soft. Stir in the tomatoes and salt, turn heat down to low, and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 15 minutes. Scoop the squash pulp out of the skin, chop it up, and stir it into the ratatouille. Cook a few more minutes, until heated through.

Spanakopita I

Spanakopita 1

1 pkg phyllo dough
1 cup olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (10 oz) pkg frozen spinach, thawed
2 cups cooked lentils
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 lb soft tofu, crumbled
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp dried dill

Set the phyllo dough out at room temp. while you prepare the other ingredients. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a skillet over medium-low heat, add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Stir in the spinach, lentils, lemon juice, tofu, salt, and dill, and remove from the heat. Drain any excess liquid before proceeding.

Use a pastry brush to spread a layer of olive oil on the bottom of a 11x17 inch baking pans, or use an oil spray (I have a nifty little gadget that I can pour oil in, pump it, and it turns the oil into a mist. Awesome!). Spread a sheet of the phyllo on the pan, brush it with oil, and repeat with 11 more sheets. If some rip, it will be fine. They are baking together!

Spread the filling as evenly and gently as possible over the phyllo, then layer the remaining phyllo over the filling, oiling each one as before. Score the top layer into thirds lengthwise and into fourths crosswise to make 12 rectangles, cutting down just to the filling. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Cut all the way through and serve.

To make this into a casserole style dish: Spray a 9x11 pan. When you roll the phyllo out flat, cut it in half so you have two smaller rectangles, and follow the same as above. Or, you could just use the full sheets, and fold them in half as you layer them…if that makes sense. Then you’d use half as many sheets, and have some for other things later...fruit pies, maybe?

Pumpkin Pancakes - V

Arame Tofu Croquettes - V

Egg Salad Sandwiches - V

French Toast - V

Fruity French Lentils - V

Fried Udon Noodles

Dutch baby pancakes with softened cinnamon apples

I made this for the little man, and he liked it so much he asked for more. It is a fun breakfast. It is baked in a round cake pan, and if you have a light in your oven, your kids can watch it puff up. They will love it. Next time, I will take a picture.

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup lowfat milk
1/2 cup flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour, but you can use any kind)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, divided
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
2 large apples, peeled and sliced

Preheat the oven to 425*F. Grease a round cake pan.
Crack the eggs into a medium bowl. Use a fork to beat the eggs, oil, and milk until smooth.
Add the flour, sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon to the bowl. Stir until a smooth batter forms, and pour into the graesed dish.
Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350*F and bake until the pancake is very puffy and lightly browned all over, about 5 to 8 minutes longer.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large skillet. Add the apples, and saute, stirring often until the apples are tender and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
To serve, spoon the apples over the pancakes.

Polenta with Red Pepper Sauce - V

I love polenta. It is just so good. I also love red peppers, expecially when they've carmelized with onions and garlic. The flavors are delicious together. Mmmm.
For this recipe, I used the rolls of polenta that you can buy and slice. Usually, I cook it, but I ran out of dry polenta so I used the roll I had handy. I have also figured out a way to make my original recipe vegan...but I've never tasted it. It should be delicious, still! I don't know the exact measurements on the polenta recipe by heart, so that will have to wait, but you can still use the rolls!


Polenta with red pepper sauce

Red pepper sauce:
1 tbsp oil
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp Italian seasoning (I use Tuscan Mills grinder...ask if you want to see)
1 14oz can of diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato sauce
Carrots and spinach to steam up and add to the side or mix inside. You choose. The sweetness of the carrots and the bitterness of the spinach just makes the dish so fun!

Heat oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add the peppers, garlic, and onion. Cook about 10 minutes, or until the peppers and onions are soft and starting to darken. Add the can of tomatoes, the sauce, and the seasoning. Cook for about 5 more minutes, or until some of the liquid is absorbed.

My Main Squeeze - V

This is the best dish...I could eat it every day! I love it so much, I am going to call it "My Main Squeeze". Don't tell the hubby!
It evolved from tofu scramble. One day while making it, I thought, "Hey, why not add some grains to this by throwing some of that leftover bulgur in there?" and it was yummy. The texure that the bulgur adds is so fun.



My Main Squeeze




-1-2 tbsp oil. I usually use extra virgin olive oil, but it is kind of pricey, so you can use any oil you like.
-Veggies! About 2 cups, chopped up. It can be anything you like. For the specific dish here, I have zucchini, mushrooms, carrot, celery, broccolini, green onion, the big leaves are some smaller leaves of collard greens, radishes, a yellow beet, and I added in some leeks after I took the picture. So, anything goes! Get crazy! (Yellow beets?!)
-1/2 a package (about 7 ounces) of firm tofu.
-1/2 a package of tempeh (about 4 ounces, this can be ommitted. It just adds more protein and texture!)
-1 cup dry bulgur (optional, but if you really want to try it and can't find any, ask me, and I will send you some!) Brown rice or couscous would work well, too.
-1 tbsp mirin (found in the Asian food aisle)
-1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
-1 tbsp red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
-Chopped cilantro for garnish - it makes it taste even better!
-Gomasio for garnish (optional)




Bring 1 1/2 cups of salted water to a boil. Pour in the bulgur, remove from heat, and cover with a lid. Let sit for about 20 minutes, or until the water is all soaked up.

Heat the oil in a pan on medium heat. Start adding veggies that will take longer to cook, like carrots, onions, celery, garlic, etc, and continue adding all the veggies to the pan. Once they are all coated with a little oil and cooking, add some water. I don't like to use a lot of oil to cook, so I like to add in water to help. It steams the veggies, and cuts down on fat. Place a lid on the pan, and let the veggies steam a little. After about 5 minutes of cooking, add the soy sauce, mirin, and vinegar. Stir the veggies, and cover the pan again, and let cook for another minute. Add the tofu, tempeh and bulgur. Stir well, and if the pan is getting too dry, add a little more water. Replace the lid and let the flavors all cook together for a few more minutes.

Serve with chopped cilantro and gomasio. Yum!

Peanut Butter Cups - V

Peanut Butter Cups


I got this recipe from The Kind Life book. MMMmmmmm

My picture doesn't do it justice. Next time ;)

Peanut butter part:
1/2 cup Earth Balance butter (non veg: margarine or butter)
3/4 cup crunchy peanute butter, preferably no salt or sugar
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs, or 10 squares crushed
1/4 cup maple sugar (or regular sugar)
Chocolate part:
1 cup malt-sweetened chocolate chips (non veg: regular chocolate chips)
1/2 cup soy milk (non veg: lowfat milk)

Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Stir in peanut butter, graham crackers and sugar. Pour into paper-lined muffin tins. Put in fridge to cool.

Next, melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler, or in a stainless steel bowl placed over a pot of boiling water. Stir in milk until smooth. Pour over peanut butter, and let cool in fridge.

Delicious! I love to put mine in the freezer. Mmm.

Homemade Bagels

This has brought in a lot of requests! Here is where I got the recipe.

Berk Bryant's Birthday Bash

When I asked my hubby what he wanted to do over the summer, he said he really wanted to see a bluegrass show while in "bluegrass country."

As it happens, we found this wonderful radio station that plays a bunch of music that I really enjoy. There is never a time when I want to switch the station because I don't like a song. And, there are no silly commercials, either. I was listening one day, and they mentioned "Berk's Birthday Bash", a live-braodcast radio show honoring the Country Gentlemen himself, Berk Bryant. The show is FREE, you just have to pick up tickets in advance. So we did, and we went.

What fun!

It was in the basement of an old place called The Vernon. I am sure I was the youngest person there who wasn't involved with it in some way. There were 3 bands, and they were fun. The first band, Bluegrass 101, had a mandolin player who was only 15, and had only been with them for about 4 months, but he was AWESOME. The second band, Blue River, when they brought up the guitar player's wife, and she sang a song. Wow, can she belt out a tune! And the third, Cherryholmes, were so so entertaining. I loved it. They had an old man playing the standing bass, and as he introduced the band, he talked about the older woman up there with him who was literally the producer of the band...they were a family band, mom, dad, and their 4 kids. Go listen. Bluegrass might not be your thing, but try it. Listen to at least one song form each band, and if you only want to listen to one band, choose Cherryholmes. Mmm...

Hubby was happy :)